Fishing at Bantuma

Last weekend, I initiated a rare thing. Waking up at 5am. All to go fishing with the locals!

We very nearly did not make it as the engineers decided to map out work for the Saturday community gang on site. Still we decided to go down to the beach anyway.

Alas we arrived too late for the boats and settled on walking along the shore. It was already a hive of activity at 7am. Men were lined along the beach, all tugging at one line or another. These men had gone out to sea earlier and dropped their big nets and come back to shore to haul the catch in.

Joe and Lawrence stopped by a small group of 6 men tugging and decided to lend their strength. It was obvious that we were going to spend at least 4 hours there and I settled down to watch and photograph them.

As the sun rose in the horizon, men were shedding their clothes and pulling hard at the nets. A break consisting of a freshly peeled hard-boiled egg sliced in half filled with a tomato & chilli onion paste and a good swig of water kept them going some more.

Slowly but surely, the buoy which indicated the distance standing between the men and their catch came closer. Soon there were more than 25 men, women and children tugging along the ropes.

Towards the end of the adventure, Joe jumped into the sea to help another man untangle the mess of nets. They were battered by the waves endlessly and still they persevered at their task. With a few final tugs, the blue net holding the fish came into view. Every now and then a fish would escape its mesh-like cage only for a local to pocket it! Lots of slithering, silver fish were hauled in and the locals proudly pointed out the various species. We had intended on paying for the fish but the men would not allow it and gave Joe and Lawrence some as is tradition for all who help.

So I make the boys get up at 5am and we end up going home with the freshest fish possible!

Great deal if you ask me.

P.S. Lawrence made a mean pepper fish soup that night.

Here are some photos. Please view by SET.